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Public Administration- Paper I "Syllabus Topic – Accountability and control:
Legislative, Executive and Judicial control over administration"

Q1. There should be minimum
control to ensure the accountability. Comment.

Model Answer:

L D White has stated that Power in a democratic society
requires control and higher degree of power needs equal amount of control,
however, the control mechanisms designed must not cripple the authority. This
requires necessary checks and balances between the different actors to ensure
mutual accountability.

In the case of Indian Public Administration, there must be
accountability to the different actors and stakeholders- Parliament/Legislature,
Judiciary, Executive , Customers and the Media. Each of these actors employs
necessary statutory and regulatory tools to exercise control over the
Administrative machinery and hold them accountable.

1) Legislative: It exercises control through different
measures like question hour, zero hour, adjournment motion, parliamentary
committees, budget, public accounts committees and no-confidence motion. In
addition the legislature has created statutory bodies to exercise independent
control over the Administration e.g Comptroller and Auditor General, Central
Vigilance Commission with the Central Bureau of Investigation

2) Executive: It exercises control through appointments, budget, rules and
codes of conduct

3) Judiciary: It exercises control over the administration by
upholding the Rule of Law (A.V Dicey). Judicial Review and Judicial activism in
the wake of the national emergency have been measures taken by the Judiciary to
hold the administration accountable to the Rule of Law.

The Constitution endows the Supreme Court under Artice 32 and High Court
under Article 226 to issue writs of habeas corpus, mandamus, certiorari, quo
warranto and prohibition.

4) Media : It has always played a critical role in mobilising public opinion
and serves as a critical informer of the inadequacies of the administration.

5) Citizen : With the right to Information Act, the ordinary citizen is
empowered to know the functioning of the administration and can hold it
accountable through suitable grievance redressal mechanisms.

The lokpal must also be institutionalized in the same spirit of exercising
control and ensuring accountability of the administrationi